Even though the colour is not bold, and the design is neither flashy nor trendy, this cover stands out from others on the shelf. There's something eerie about the woman's body language and her jet-black skirt set against the otherwise bleached-out colour palette. Then there's the axe, juxtaposed with a classically feminine script. The restrained touches “ the ornament in the top left corner, the transparent circle containing the words a novel “ add texture and depth without causing the design to feel cluttered. Everything works: it's classy, with a hint of creepy. <i>“ Jessica Sullivan</i>

<I>Touch</I> by Alexi Zentner; designed by Terri Nimmo (Random House Canada)

A stylish riff on sophisticated film noir posters of the early 1940s, this design uses a nostalgic tone to convey the feel of the book. The bold, modernist typeface, a subtle nod to the era, is not overplayed. The splash of red type fits nicely into the visual hierarchy of typographical elements. The positioning and varying point sizes convey depth, movement, and drama. The image of a cropped, gun-toting figure casting a shadow offers minor clues about the main character but leaves much to the reader's imagination. It is an impressive feat to get a largely black-and-white cover approved in a time when the refrain most often heard is, More colour, please! <i>“ Terri Nimmo</i>

It has become a bit of a cliché to place an image of a woman, hair lifted by the breeze and head turned away, on a cover geared to the all-important women's market. Which is a shame: like most clichés, it is the overuse of a good idea that makes it feel tired. David Gee has played with this visual trope and imbued it with fresh meaning by repeating the image to reflect a story told during two time periods in one woman's life. I love the simple, confident type treatment for the title as well. <i>“ Ingrid Paulson</i>

<I>Girl in Shades</I> by Allison Baggio; designed by David A. Gee (ECW Press)

What kills me about this design is how perfectly it delivers on the promise of the title. From a distance the cover is a pale blur, and you think, Something's going on here. On closer inspection <br />
you notice the pale blur is a blank colour-by-numbers image of a woman's face, and you think, What is going on here? Book in hand, you notice the physical details “ the laid paper, the colour-by-numbers legend on the spine “ and you marvel at it all without having any idea what it is you're looking at. You have to unlock it, piece by piece. You read the back, you read the flaps, and you look at the cover again and think, I guess I have to buy the book if I'm going to figure it out. Difficult to explain, but brilliant. <i>“ David A. Gee</i>

<I>This Will Be Difficult to Explain and Other Stories</I> by Johanna Skibsrud; designed by Michel Vrana (Hamish Hamilton Canada)

Layered with information that compels me to pick it up, this is an impeccably crafted example of intriguing cover design. There's mystery evoked by the house reflected in a wet, icy thaw, and just the right touch of nostalgia in the stained, aged-paper background. The typeface is expertly understated, and the play between the title and image has me coming up with various theories about exactly who, or what, the carnivore is. On its own, the cover is a perfect balance of the visceral and literary, but as part of a series of equally well-conceived covers (including paperback reprints of novels by Emily Schultz, Jonathan Bennett, and Nathan Whitlock), it's simply brilliant. <i>“ Michel Vrana</i>